Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1887-06-21
AN IRRIGATION SCHEME
TO TREBLE VALUES IN SACRA-
MENTO COUNTY,
And Treble the Business and Pros
perity of the City and County
A Definite Plan Suggested.

EDS RECORD UNION: There are 400 Sec
tons of land wanting water in Sacramento
| county, and water is running TO waste that
would, if applied to the land, double the
taxable value of the entire city and county
combined would treble the present agri-
cultural revenue of the county treble the
population of the county; treble the num-
Der of farm laborers employed; treble the
number of farm wagons in use; treble the
number of ploughs, harrows, spades and
hoes, and every kind of improvement and
utensil; treble the amount used of every
kind of household article, from clothes
pin to a bedroom set, from nutmeg to q
barrel of -four. All this means profit to
every established business in this city. 1t
means an increase in rents and raise in
the price of corner lots. 1t means growth
to the city-rapid growth. 1t means profit
in speculation it means the use of more
money and at higher interest; in fact, it
means quickened impulse 10 every ave-
nue. of trade and business-from the team
that hauls load Of sand to the engine
that moves car train of fruit.
Now, shall ii be brought about by water?
There is no place in the State where water
can be so cheaply and so abundantly put
upon the land as here in Sacramento
county. When the great grazing interest
of California broke up, attention was turned
to farming. Southern California soon
found that with profitable cultivation of
the soil water was necessity; therefore
when water was obtained such things were
planted as would yield the largest returns
per acre. With the orange and grape sew
eral hundred dollars revenue per acre
could be made, with wheat and barley
only $25 to $40 could be realized 1t is plain
to be seen why oranges were planted.
Northern and Central California, when
attention was turned to farming, rewarded
her farmers with wealth without water,
beyond the natural rainfall. Farmers used
their thousands of acres, and the small
profit per acre made them wealthy Sac
ramento county does not, and never has,
stood among the highest as a grain county
Portions of it approach first-ciass, but it is
strictly first class as fruit county, and it is
extremely well fitted for irrigation by its
character and constituents of soil. AS a
whole county, it is unquestionably the best
county for irrigation in the State, all
things considered. Other places will pro-
duce good fruit, but there is no lottery in the
business in Sacramento county Some
would-be settler will find the land too high
to raise Texas steers upon, but there is not
one acre of the upland OF Sacramento
county, at present selling prices, but will
pay for itself in profit the fifth year after it
is planted to choice fruit and well Guilty.
ated and properly irrigated.
Some one will say we want railroads"
Have we not got them, and have we not
l.
county We have so many railroads now
that there is scarcely room for more, under
the present modes of cultivation.
Another will say we want more settlers,
so as to divide up these large land hold
ings that will bring the boom. But it
will do nothing of the kind Water is the
key to boom. 1t has been and is the key
to the whole success in Southern Califor-
| MIA, and it will be here. Get water, and
| you will have your settlers, and your
| boom. You cannot then keep them away.
Putting up the price OF land and lots will
not bring settlers. Land is as high as it
will bear now with the present modes OF
cultivation. Now for the plan.
We all know that the American and
Costumes rivers have all the water that is
| nee essary to irrigate all of the land in Sac
| ramento county, and leave plenty to satisfy
all riparian demands. Let every man in
Sacramento county join the Citizens I'M
provement Association, and when the
Executive Committee select a Committee
| on Water and Irrigation, let them place in
| the hands of the committee funds enough
to make an examination of the situation.
Let that committee lead in this matter.
Let there be no clackers put on. but men
who have faith in the ",rdter;" men who
can and will give their time. This whole
county can, with water, be made as beauti-
| full as the settlement of Pasadena in Los
| Angeles county.
! One other thing | would suggest let
| the real estate dealers put up for few
| acres OF land and plant it to orange trees
plant a cypress hedge around it, and make
a beginning of little paradise, After they
| have cultivated it for one year, they will be
able to sell it at an advance If they wish
! TO demonstrate to the Eastern neopIe that
the orange can be grown here, otner than
| in dooryards as an ornamental tree mani
| fest that you have some faith in your own
| country, then men who have capital to
| invest will also have faith. Men wiz not
| invest money on values based upon ''ifs. u
There is plenty of capital that will take
| hold of an enterprise with fair and reas-
! enable chance of a great profit, if there is
| but small chance of 8 small loss as an
| offset.
The Water and Irrigation Committees OF
| the Improvement Association, if they have
| the where with TO work with, can bring
! about the boom that will double the taxa
bic value of the county on its real estate
| alone. Every day meet farmer that
will give onefourth of his land for irriga-
ton facilities for the other three-fourths.
| Look at the bargain he makes His land is
now worth say $40 per acre; with irriga.
| ton it will be worth treble that amount.
| or $40 per acre. If therefore he had lGC
acres and gives 40 acres for the increase of
$50 per acre on 100 acres, or $1,000, as q
return for the 40 acres of his land. II
looks like large results on paper, but who
Will come forward and say that there is
| one acre of land 10 Sacramento county tina,
| if irrigated, would not be worth $12o. II
there is one, let him rise He would also
| become the owner of The water ditch TO the
extent of three-fourths 10 the ditch builders
one-fourth.
Now let US see what there is in it for the
ditch builder, provided each land owner
| would give one-fouTth:
Take the land lying between the Amer
| lean and Cosumnes rivers, the foothills
and the low lands; estimate it at 10000
acres-it is much more. One-fourih is
| 81 800 acres at $40 per acre, its present
value would be 81, 100000 On The in.
creased value to Sl20 per acre the amount
would be S4,500,000. On these figures the
farmers would have much the best of it,
but Sl20 per acre is no boom price, OF
above moderate value for land with irri.
| cation facilities.
This plan would furnish the water al
cost, as any price charged for water over
the cost Of repairs and delivery of the
same would revert to the owners in divi.
dends. An engineer is competent to make
a rough estimate on the cost of a canal
| Private enterprise will take hold of anv
scheme that has plenty of money in it
The land owners can, under the Wright
irrigation bill, appropriate the water and
build their own canal and own the whole
| of it.
will close by saying that in Southern
California any land with water will com.
msnd $3.50 per acre-more than double nv
| estimates. This would give the canal
boilders over $4,000, goo. H.
| FATAL ACCIDENT NEAR WILLows.-Early
yesterday morning man named William
Harris was found lying upon the railroad
/ e1,rrt sc